Roseburg review. [volume] (Roseburg, Or.) 1885-1920, 1887-01-14
LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN.
A HISTORICAL BATTLE GROUND NOW
POURING FORTH A STREAM.

The Discovery of the Water Made by q
Party While Exploring Cave in the
Mountain-Ii illumination of the subtcr-
ranean Chamber.
1t will be remembered that the discov-
cry Of the water was made by party
which explored the large cave, which is
entered near the waters edge near the
Nashville & Chattanooga bridge. This
party, by dint of crawling and creeping
on all fours through bitches, gulleys, and
over streams, along fathomless abysses
and near yawning chasms, entered gigan-
tic dome-shaped chamber, from the roof
of which poured, with roar like thun-
der, mountain stream, ice cold and clear
as crystal. BY original experiments with
lighted balloons, the altitude of the cham
Der ascertained and the stream was lo-
Gated. The surface of the mountain was
then cross ss-sectioned, levels run, and
finally spot was located under which the
engineers stated the stream would be
found 4.~zz.-z-sz--zs- z-s.-.s4-ss
The surface of the mountain at that
point is solid limestone, hard as adamant
and perfectly compact. Undeterred by
such obstacles, the work was begun, and
day by day the shaft went lower until it
had been sunk about forty feet, it was
then the patient toll was rewarded and the
gushing fountain in the bowels of the
mountain was reached The water was
found to be in even larger quantity than
was anticipated, and the work of utilizing
1T began. 1t was decided to drive tunnel
from the bottom of the shaft in anotheast-
erly direction to the surface of the noun
tain. The length of the tunnel is perhaps
fco oh L.
10 eight feet broad. 1t is cut through
solid stone
The shaft leads forty feet in a direct
vertical line from above to a double drift
which opens into the mouth of the cham
Der into which the stream pours and con-
meets, in direct line with the flow of the
/ stream, with the tunnel of stone, which
opens on the face of the mountain about
nfty feet below the top of the shaft. I'M
agine mighty inverted IL" and you have
general aspect of the work. The leg is
the shaft; at the point where the leg inter-
sects the arm is the roof of the chamber.
into which the stream pours; the left arm
represents the natural flow of the stream
from the bowels of the mountain, and the
right arm represents the tunnel into
which the water will be conducted. The
water is as clear as any mountain spring,
absolutely. transparent, and icy cold. It
flows quite rapidly, the dimensions being
about four inches in depth and two and
one-half to four feet in width. It de-
scribes semi-circle at the foot of the
shaft and then pours into the mighty
chamber.
ILLUMINATING THE CHAMBER
The scene is one of SURPRISING grandeur
and was beautifully illuminated by Mr..
Anderson with saturated cotton balls and
colored lights. The chamber is dome
shaped, fully 230 feet in depth. A huge
bowlder was pitched into the inky black
ness into which the stream poured and
seven seconds elapsed before it struck
bottom. 1t fell with thud that was dis
tinctly audible above. Mr. Anderson sus-
pended burning cotton balls In this cham
Der, and it was lighted up brilliantly near
the top, but all was inky black in the
| fathomless depths below. The stream
seems to flow tardily before it reaches this
mighty subterranean precipice as If in
horror and then daahes over the well-worn
rocks, gurgling, hissing and seething, and
is lost in darkness. Explorers who have
visited the cave and observed all this state
| that the water is partially dissipated into
mist before it reaches the bottom. One of
the flaming balls was dropped into the
chamber. 1t fared up the ceilings be-
spangled with diamonds, the walls which
supported the mighty pillars and gigantic
columns were visible for half second, and
down, down went the flaming torch, hiss
| ing in the mist of the waterfall, turning
and twisting In its terrible descent, until it
was again lost in darkness
| An expert in water-works, who thor
] oughly understands its volume and veloc-
ity, states that the flow of water from that
stream alone will exceed 100000 gallons
| every twenty-four hours. Some little dis
tance from the main stream another
stream has been discovered. 1t is the in
tention of Mr.. Anderson to tunnel to the
second stream and unite it with the main
body of water. He says it is fully one
third as large as the main stream, and, ac-
| cording to the estimate of the expert, that
would increase the total flow to 100000
| gallons daily. Steps will be at once taken
to unite the streams. The tunnel will be
enlarged and cemented, and the flow of
water diverted from its old channel into
the mouth of the tunnel, and a reservoir
with 100000 or 5000, 600 capacity will be
created. The water will be conducted
from the cave through twenty-inch mains
to the ecity.-Chattanooga Times.
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